


Oath of Flames

by FullmetalLemons (orphan_account)



Category: Sword Art Online
Genre: Adventure, Confrontations, Dating, F/M, First Dates, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Self Confidence Issues, Self-Acceptance, Self-Esteem Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-10
Updated: 2017-03-10
Packaged: 2018-10-02 03:00:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10207910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/FullmetalLemons
Summary: Prompt from CrimsonAegis:"The OC is named Edan who wandered into Lisbeth's shop in SAO hoping to find a better shield. He has low-self esteem and keeps to himself a lot because every time he joins a party he always has to be saved by someone and every party he joins considers him a burden. He figures better equipment will make him less of a burden. He has black spiky hair with brown eyes and an above average height for a 17 year old boy. His main weapon is a one-handed sword called Flamberge and has a Flame Wyrm armor set. He awkwardly asks for a better shield from Lisbeth and she mentions that she needs a drop called Efreet's Soul to make the shield he wants. Lisbeth then notices his unconfident nature and decides to tease him with her cheerful and mischievous nature to get him to open up more and to the point where she wants to come along. The two slowly bond while trying to find the monster who drops it and Lisbeth slowly gets over her crush with Kirito as she gets to know Edan more. Edan also gains a little more confidence as he bonds with Lisbeth."





	1. Chapter 1

Lisbeth stacked the crates one on top of the other in the back room, grunting softly as she lifted the last crate. “Man, I’ve got to stop filling these up all the way.” She commented to herself. As she was bracing herself to stack the last crate, she heard the bells attached to the front door of her shop begin to chime, letting her know that a customer had arrived. “Just a sec!” She called, huffing as the last crate made it to the top of her pile.  
Lisbeth wiped the light sweat from her forehead, and sauntered out to her storefront with a smile on her face. “Hi! Welcome to Lisbeth’s Blacksmith Shop!” She chirped, slipping behind the counter.  
“Oh, uh, hi.”  
Lisbeth studied the tall, almost gangly figure in front of her. His black hair was spiked in an unnatural way, and his brown eyes were darting around the items in her shop. He was chewing on his lip, and seemingly avoiding any and all eye contact with Lisbeth. He chuckled nervously, his hands shoved in his pockets.  
Lisbeth continued to smile warmly at the boy and asked, “Can I help you with something? Do you need armor or a weapon forged?”  
The boy nodded, stepping forward and finally making eye contact with Lisbeth. “I-I was hoping that I could buy a new shield from you.”  
Lisbeth nodded slowly. “Of course. I don’t have any shields made right now, but I can forge anything you’d like! Can I see your old shield?”  
“Oh-uh-of course!” He stammered, reaching for his shield.   
His lack of composure made Lisbeth giggle, and she tried to muffle the sound by bringing her hand to her mouth. As the boy placed his shield on the counter, she brought up its specifications and frowned. “Mhm.” She murmured, knocking her knuckles against the shield. “This shield is useless.”  
The boy broke eye contact with her then, seeming a bit put off by her words. “Oh, I figured…I keep dying anytime I fight, I’m afraid that I’m a burden every time I join a party.”  
“Hey,” Lisbeth began, a smile painting her face, “What’s being afraid going to help? Not you, that’s for sure.” Lisbeth pushed his old shield aside, and he raised his eyes to meet hers again. Up close, she could see what a deep brown they were, warm and inviting. “I can make you a new shield, and it will be awesome. The thing is, I’ll need Efreet’s Soul to make it.”  
“Efreet’s Soul?” The boy contorted his face in confusion.  
Lisbeth nodded. “Mhm. It’s a drop from a flame creature, up in the mountainous region.” Lisbeth grinned mischievously. “That means to get the Efreet’s Soul, you’re going to have to kill it.”  
The boy’s face flushed, and he looked down at the counter. “I-Is it a high level creature? Do you think…Do you think that I can defeat it on my own?”  
Lisbeth was beginning to feel badly for the boy, he was in clear distress over his inability to fight. Not to mention, she was curious about him. Why was he so timid and fearful? What had happened that made him this way? He couldn’t possibly be so forlorn over dying in a game, could he? “I’m not really sure.” She told him honestly. “Don’t worry about it, though.” Lisbeth held out her hand, reaching over the counter to offer the boy a handshake. “We haven’t been properly introduced yet. My name is Lisbeth, owner of Lisbeth’s Blacksmith Shop.”  
The boy held his hand out, gingerly grasping hers in a loose handshake. He shook her hand rapidly before quickly retracting his hand. “My name is Edan.”  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   
“Are you sure you want to come? I-I don’t want to keep you from your shop.” Edan needled, his thumbs playing with the bottom of his sleeves.  
“Of course I’m sure!” Lisbeth said with a smile. “I don’t get out of the shop enough, anyway.”  
Edan returned a small smile, and the two began walking. “Thank you, then.”  
“It’s no problem!” Lisbeth told him, raising her hand and pointing to the right. “The mountainous region is this way. We shouldn’t run into too much trouble on the way to find the drop, we should be there and back in no time.”  
Edan nodded, and let her lead as they began walking the dirt path that Lisbeth had pointed to. Lisbeth watched Edan out of the corner of her eye as they walked; he looked at the ground, most of the time. When he looked up, though, the light shined into his eyes, and Lisbeth noticed that his eyes were a much more immersive brown than she had first noticed- they contained speckles of all shades of brown, and almost gained a golden hue when the light hit them just right. He walked stiffly, almost robotically, and seemed to be keeping a distance from Lisbeth on purpose. Lisbeth came to the conclusion that perhaps girls made him nervous.  
“So, Edan.” She began, twirling her hair in between her fingers. “What’s your story?”  
Edan looked at her with a perplexed expression. “My…story?”  
Lisbeth nodded eagerly. “Yeah, tell me about yourself.”  
Edan scrunched his face up, thinking. “Well, I’m seventeen years old and I…I keep to myself, mostly. I’m afraid I’m not the most interesting person.”  
Lisbeth cocked her head to the side. “Well, there’s nothing wrong with keeping to yourself. But don’t you get lonely? Once we get you that new shield, maybe you’ll want to group up with people, and then you might make some new friends!” Lisbeth smiled at him with a hint of encouragement, and earned a small smile from Edan in return.   
Lisbeth stopped in her tracks, her ears twitching. Had she just heard some sort of rustling behind them? No, there was no way that a creature would be this far out of the spawn zone…  
“Lisbeth!” Edan gasped, grabbing her arm and pulling her out of the way.  
“Huh?” Lisbeth barely had time to react as an elemental dashed through the spot she had been standing seconds before. The monster swung around, facing the pair and ready for battle.  
Lisbeth drew her mace, breaking free from Edan and swinging at the elemental. As the monster retracted backwards, she turned to Edan and told him, “Go on, let’s see how you fight!”  
Edan chewed on his lip for a moment, before pulling out his sword nervously. He hesitated as he swung at the elemental, not using nearly enough power to attack it. Lisbeth observed his fighting style, and saw his lack of confidence in his own ability. “Come on, Edan! Swing harder!” She encouraged him as she swung with her mace again, making sure the creature didn’t swing at Edan. “Hit him like you mean it!”  
Edan obeyed, swinging with more force this time, and doing more damage. The creature was at less than half health, and Lisbeth backed off. “Go ahead, finished him off!” She cheered Edan on, watching as he swung his sword at the creature a few more times, with more power behind each hit. When the creature was defeated, Lisbeth grinned at him and offered him a high five. He tapped his hand with hers lightly, smiling at her sheepishly.  
“Hey, could I take a look at your sword?” She asked him, curious about the red metal piece he was still holding.  
“Mhm.” Edan handed it to her, and she brought up its specs, gaping. “Wow, Flamberge? You’ve got an awesome sword, Edan!” She fingered the shiny, cold metal for a moment, wondering how Edan had come across a sword like that.  
“T-Thanks.” His sheepish grin grew a bit more as she handed him his sword, which he sheathed once more. “And…Thank you for encouraging me, and letting me get the kill on that elemental. You didn’t have to do that.”  
Lisbeth shook her head and smiled warmly. “You need to be more confident in yourself, Edan. You have potential to be a great fighter. You just need to go for it, instead of second guessing yourself.”  
Edan’s face brightened as they continued through the mountainous path. “You really think so?” He marveled.  
“Duh!” Lisbeth encouraged him further. “I saw how well you fought once you stopped worrying so much. Trust me, you’re capable.” Lisbeth found herself reaching between their bodies and grabbing his hand. “Have some faith in yourself.” She told him, squeezing his warm hand.  
Edan blushed furiously, but gave Lisbeth’s hand a small squeeze in return before Lisbeth dropped their hands between them. Lisbeth felt her own cheeks getting warm, and she picked up her walking pace. “Sorry.” She murmured. “I can be a little over zealous at times.” She laughed lightly, to cover her embarrassment.  
“I-It’s okay.” Edan replied shortly, keeping up to Lisbeth’s new pace.  
Lisbeth silently cursed herself for her forwardness- she hadn’t meant anything by taking his hand. She just wanted to show him some support and comfort. Of course, he was a cute boy. Handsome, even. His personality was intriguing, and she felt the need to look out for him, and care for him. Lisbeth chewed on her lower lip, taking a deep breath and trying to push such thoughts from her head.  
“Li-Lisbeth?” He whispered suddenly, halting to a stop. “Lisbeth, look over there.”  
Lisbeth followed Edan’s gesture to the area ahead of them. She squinted, looking between the tall piles of stones and finally saw what Edan was pointing at. There was a group of orange players gathered on top of a tall rock, laughing and joking with each other. There must have been four or five of them. Cautiously, Lisbeth put her finger to her lips and grabbed Edan with her free hand. She crouched down, Edan doing the same, and she quietly led him back a few steps, ducking behind a large boulder.  
“What do you think they did?” Edan whispered as they both scaled their bodies against the rock.  
“I don’t know. Could be anything from stealing to killing another player. We’d better not chance it. We should stay out of their way.”  
Edan nodded. “Is there another way to get to the monster who drops Efreet’s Soul?” He asked nervously.  
Lisbeth pulled up her map, studying it closely. Disgruntled, she closed the map and shook her head. “There’s only one way in and one way out, and it’s this path.” Lisbeth sighed, but then smiled. “The good news about that, is that those orange players will have to leave eventually, and they’ll have to leave by this path. So…If you want to find a place to lay low for a bit, we can wait and see if they leave.”  
Edan blushed and lowered his eyes. “I couldn’t ask you to stay away from your shop for that long. I feel like enough of a burden keeping you away as long as I have.”  
Lisbeth shook her head. “You’re not a burden at all. I…I’ve really been enjoying spending time with you.”  
The blush on Edan’s face grew darker, and he asked, “Really?”  
Lisbeth nodded. “Really.”  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   
The pair wandered off the path a bit, until they found a cluster of rocks with a small opening. It was a cavern of sorts, and when they crawled inside, it opened up into a large, hollow area. The two of them sat on the ground Indian style, facing each other. “Sorry I’m so useless.” Edan told her. “If I wasn’t, maybe we wouldn’t have had to avoid those orange players.”  
“Are you crazy?” Lisbeth scoffed. “First of all, you are the farthest thing from useless! I saw your fighting capabilities when we fought that elemental! And, on top of that, you’re the one that saw the orange players in the first place. If you hadn’t, we could have walked right into them and gotten into some serious trouble.” Lisbeth gave him a stern look, his eyes growing wide at her seriousness. “So don’t go calling yourself useless. I wouldn’t want to run into orange players, no matter who I was with.”  
Edan’s face was flushed with embarrassment, and Lisbeth reached out to take his hand. He gasped quietly as she threaded his fingers through her own, but he didn’t pull away. Lisbeth’s eyes stayed connected to his as she relished in the warmth of his skin against hers. A question had been cropping into her mind on occasion since getting to know Edan a bit better, and she decided that she should ask it now instead of setting herself up for disappointment later on. “Hey, Edan? Do you…Do you have a girlfriend?”  
Edan’s blush grew deeper, and he shook his head vigorously. “Oh, no. I-I…” His voice trailed off into a pool of soft stammers.  
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” Lisbeth apologized in honestly. “I was just curious.”  
“D-Did you think I might have one?” Edan asked, with a twinge of hopefulness in his voice.  
Lisbeth smiled at him. “I don’t see why you wouldn’t.” She told truthfully.  
That made bite his lip, either to hide a smile or suppress his embarrassment. “D-Do you have a boyfriend?”  
Lisbeth licked her lips, shaking her head. “No, I don’t.” She thought of Kirito, the only boy that she had ever thought of making her boyfriend. He was happy with Asuna, though, her best friend. She hadn’t thought about him in some time. Lisbeth’s heart began to race as it clicked in her head: She had thought of Kirito because Edan was making her feel the same was that Kirito once did.  
Edan blushed and squeezed her hand. “I don’t see why you wouldn’t.” He repeated her words.  
Lisbeth felt a blush deepening her cheeks, and her breathing caught as she looked at Edan. Something as simple as a mental realization of her feelings had suddenly made her feel giddy, almost intoxicated. She smiled at Edan, unable to formulate a single word. Still, she held onto his hand, a warmth that was a silent comfort to her.  
Edan turned to the opening of the cavern and craned his neck to look out. “Lisbeth, look.” He motioned for her to look, and she craned her neck to do so. They watched in silence as the group of orange players passed them, walking down the nearby path in a frightening hoard. “Wow…There are so many.” Edan gaped.  
It was true, there was even more than Lisbeth had originally thought. There were seven of them; she counted as they walked by. When they were positive that the coast was clear, Edan and Lisbeth crawled back out of the small opening, brushing themselves off as they walked back out to the dirt path.  
“We’re close.” Lisbeth told him, as they continued on their halted journey.  
Edan simply nodded and smiled at her. “So, do you know what kind of creature we are facing, or were you just pulling my leg back at your shop?”  
Lisbeth laughed and flashed him a mischievous grin. “It’s not half as scary as I made it sound…It’s just a flame elemental.” Edan sighed with relief, and Lisbeth added, “But, it is a more powerful one than the elemental we faced earlier. Trust me.”  
Edan’s face turned more serious and he nodded.  
The two walked on in silence, until they came to a wide, open area surrounded by boulders and small pools of orange lava. “Whoa…”Edan commented.  
“Yup, this is where he is.”  
Lisbeth scanned the area, finally resting her eyes on the elemental in a nearby corner. “Look, he’s right over there.”  
The pair stared at the creature- he was coated in a thick barrier of flames, and he had two horns on top of his head. He paced back and forth in his spawning zone, waiting for battle. Smoke blew from somewhere on his face, and his body was made up of smoldering stones, floating into formation inside the veil of fire.  
“He looks tough.” Edan whispered.  
Lisbeth grabbed his hand and gave it a quick squeeze. “I believe in you, Edan. Now you have to believe in yourself.” Edan nodded in response. “We are going to run out there, and go crazy on him! I want you to sing your sword as hard as you can, and don’t stop no matter what, okay?”  
Edan nodded, letting go of Lisbeth’s hand to pull out his Flamberge. “I’m ready.” He told her.  
Lisbeth pulled out her mace, and whispered, “One…Two…Three…Go!”  
The two of them rushed out towards the monster, weapons ready for battle. Edan was the first to reach him, and he swung his sword directly at the creature’s head, hard. He was already on his second swing by the time Lisbeth was making contact with her mace on the creature’s side. The two of them hacked and slashed at the flaming monster, who was dizzied and surprised. Lisbeth swung her mace, watching as Edan confidently stabbed the creature right through the center, causing a finishing blow. She sheathed her mace and clapped her hands together.   
“Edan, that was amazing! You were so in the zone!”   
Edan sheathed his Flamberge, and before Lisbeth realized what was happening, Edan had pulled her into a tight hug. Lisbeth gladly hugged him back, breathing lightly as the warmth of Edan’s body against hers traveled throughout her entire being. Edan eventually pulled away, but didn’t completely end the embrace. His hands still rested on her shoulders, and they were still close enough that Lisbeth could feel a warmth radiating between them.  
“Thank you, Lisbeth.” Edan said quietly.  
“W-What for?” Lisbeth asked, a confused expression painting her face.  
“F-For bringing me out of my shell, and giving me some confidence to fight.”  
“Well, I-I…” Lisbeth was not usually a nervous person, but she couldn’t seem to find any words when she was so close to Edan. She felt her heart pounding in her chest, and he hand climbing up to rest of his chest. She leaned her head in closer to Edan, and saw him leaning in to her, as well. She closed her eyes, melting as their lips made a soft contact. The connection to him from the kiss flowed throughout her entire body, for the few moments that the kiss lasted.  
When they pulled from the kiss, both of their cheeks were flushed and warm, and Lisbeth’s breathing had quickened. Edan’s eyes were wide, waiting for Lisbeth to say something, anything. Lisbeth finally trailed her hands down Edan’s chest, and grabbed his hand. “Sorry if that was a little forward.”  
Edan shook his head. “No, I…I wanted to.” He told her.  
Satisfied with his response, Lisbeth led him over to the elemental’s corpse. She reached down, picking up the Efreet’s Soul drop. “Here it is.” She told him, turning to him and smiling. “Let’s go make you a new shield.”  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
Lisbeth brought out the shield, a strong piece of glistening red metal, and set it on the counter. “Voila!” She held her hands out, presenting the shield as if it were a prized piece of art.  
A wide smile spread across Edan’s face as he lifted it, holding it in place and mocking a battle, shifting from side to side. “Wow, this is so great! And it even matches my sword!” Edan grinned at her, holstering the shield on his back. “Thank you so much, Lisbeth. You’ve done so much for me. How much for the shield?”  
Lisbeth shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. We’re…friends now. I don’t charge friends.”  
Edan shook his head. “Come on, tell me what I owe you.”  
Lisbeth remained firm. “No way! Friends don’t pay at Lisbeth’s Blacksmith Shop.” She wagged her finger at Edan, illustrating her seriousness.  
“I have to repay you somehow, Lisbeth.” Edan insisted.  
Lisbeth thought for a moment. “Well,” She finally said, “If you really feel that way, then why don’t you agree to be in a party with me? We could go out on more adventures together, then.”  
Edan gaped at her. “You mean you really want to go places with me, even after what a burden I’ve been?”  
Lisbeth shook her head, walking around the counter to stand with Edan. “I already told you.” Lisbeth wrapped her arms around Edan and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. “You aren’t a burden.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CrimsonAegis Prompt:   
> "This is to repay Lisbeth for rebuilding up Edan's self-confidence. Edan finally worked up the courage to ask Lisbeth out on a date, a month after making him his new shield. He plans to take her to a cafe and to the 47th floor flower area. Anything that happens on the date is up to you, maybe include Edan encountering some old party members who had broken down his self-esteem? I would also like the shield to be named Scorching Heart."

“Edan!” Lisbeth smiled warmly as her friend entered the shop, receiving a smile back, in return. “How’s the shield working for you?” It had been a month since she had forged the sword for Edan, and she had only seen him briefly since then. They had cleared a dungeon together one day, and he had hung around the shop and talked with her for a while on another occasion. Lisbeth was excited to see him- she hated to admit it, but she had really missed him.  
“It’s great!” He pulled it out and placed it on the counter for her to see for herself. “Are you busy today?”  
Lisbeth ran her hand over the smooth, red metal before bringing up the shield’s specs. “Scorching Heart…” She murmured quietly, seeing the name that Edan had given the shield. For some reason, the name brought a slight warmth to her cheeks as she closed out of the specs window. “No,” She told Edan, “I’m not busy. Want to go on an adventure?” She asked him, smiling.  
Edan clasped Scorching Heart onto his back again, fumbling slightly as he did so. “Actually…I was ah, wondering if you wanted to go on…a date. Up on the 47th floor.” Edan was twiddling his thumbs nervously as he continued, “It’s really beautiful up there with all the gardens and…And there’s a café up there, with coffee and tea…So I was wondering if you wanted to go with me.”  
Lisbeth could tell he was near holding his breath in anticipation of her answer. Lisbeth found herself nodding her head eagerly. “I would love to go.” She told him.   
Edan’s face brightened, and his mouth formed an honest grin. “Great!”  
When Lisbeth sauntered around the counter to leave, she confidently took his hand into hers. He blushed and smiled at her as she did so, which made Lisbeth’s heart swell. The pair continued to hold hands, the entire walk to the Teleport Gate. When they exited the gate on the 47th floor, Lisbeth smiled up into the light shining down on the gardens, letting it warm her face in the same way that Edan’s hand was warming hers. She inhaled deeply, breathing in the saccharine scent of a floral nirvana.  
When her eyes came back down, she found Edan looking at her inquisitively. When their eyes made contact, he blushed lightly. He led her through the flowery gardens, and soon enough, an area with seating and a small stand came into view. Lisbeth and Edan made their way up to the stand. Lisbeth got a fruity herbal tea and Edan got an earl grey, and Edan let her lead the way to a table. Lisbeth picked a table closest to the outskirts of the small patio, closest to the hordes of flowers.   
“Thank you for the tea.” She told him as they sat down on the lattice metal chairs.   
“Thank you for coming on a date with me.” Edan said, merely a whisper, as a blushed warmed his cheeks. He tried to hide it with his tea cup, but Lisbeth still saw the change in color from across the table.  
Lisbeth wanted to tell him how cute he was, that she thought his continual blushing was positively adorable, but she resisted at risk of embarrassing him further. The two drank their tea quietly, as a light breeze blew over the area, making floral scents waft through the air. As Lisbeth was taking a sip of her tea, a flower got blown up by the breeze, landing on the lattice table in front of Edan. He placed down his cup, carefully lifting the flower into his fingers. “It matches your eyes.” He told her, holding up the flower for her to see. It was a dark pink, nearly red.  
Lisbeth held her breath as Edan reached over, gingerly attaching the flower to the small hairclip that held her hair in place. She felt her cheeks grow as pink as the flower when he told her, “Wearing it suits you.”  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
Lisbeth and Edan ended up in Floria, where many couples were walking through the fields of flowers together. Lisbeth gladly held onto Edan’s hand, unashamed to be seen as a couple. Edan led her through the fields, and the romantic atmosphere almost made her feel a bit dizzy, a bit heady.   
“Look, it’s Edan!”  
Lisbeth felt Edan’s grip on her hand tighten as he turned his head slowly to address the voice. She noticed Edan biting his lip as the group of four approached- there were two girls and two boys. The two girls had hair of blue, and eyes as black as night. The taller boy had black hair and blue eyes, and the shorter boy had long hair, longer than Lisbeth’s, that was blonde. Lisbeth noticed Edan beginning to shake slightly as the group got closer.  
“What the hell are you doing here, Edan? Shouldn’t you be out burdening some other party by dying?” The taller boy spoke fluidly, in a distasteful, mocking tone.  
“S-Shut up, Damien.” Edan sputtered, looking down at the ground.  
“Got yourself a little girlfriend? Gave up on trying to fight?” The shorter boy chimed in, making the two girls giggle.  
Lisbeth felt her blood boiling. She glanced at Edan, who didn’t seem ready to take any sort of action, and decided that she would have to. “You idiots leave him alone!” She barked at them, letting go of Edan’s hand and taking a step towards them.  
Damien threw his hands up, mocking her as he said, “Oh, look, his little girlfriend is going to stand up for him since he can’t do it for himself.”  
“Leave us alone, Damien.” Edan said, his voice angry as he raised his head to face the other boy.  
“Yeah, or what? You’ll cry?”  
More laughter resonated from the two girls, and the shorter boy. Edan’s face had grown red with anger, and he rashly drew Flamberge. “I said to piss off.” He growled, getting into a fighting stance.  
Damien raised his eyebrows, glancing at the shorter boy. “What’s your problem, Edan? You’d risk going orange just to…”  
The shorter boy cut him off, pulling on his arm. “Let’s just get out of here.” He suggested quietly.  
Damien nodded his head, a soft scoff preluding his response, “Yeah, let’s go.”  
And then they were gone, just as quickly as they had approached. Edan sheathed his sword, his body still shaking. Lisbeth grabbed both of his hands tenderly. “Who were they?” She whispered.  
“Some members of an old party I was in.” Edan grimaced, shaking his head.  
Lisbeth frowned, squeezing Edan’s hands tightly. “They’re idiots, and they’re wrong. Don’t let them get to you.”  
Edan shook his head. “They aren’t wrong, I…All I did was die when we were in a party. I was useless.”  
Lisbeth gently let go of one of his hands to raise hers to his cheek. She tenderly thumbed his soft skin, seeing his eyes widen at her intimate touch. “You’re the farthest thing from useless, Edan.”   
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
They we still at Floria as the sky was growing dark. They sat on a bench in the lush foliage, close enough that Lisbeth could feel their body heat radiating between them. Lisbeth took the initiative to inch closer to Edan as the sky grew a bit darker, tendrils of orange and red painting the sky. Gingerly, she clasped their hands together, filling the space between them with her body.  
Edan cautiously put his arm around her, and Lisbeth easily relaxed into his touch. She rested her head on his shoulder and whispered, “Thank you for a wonderful day, Edan.”  
She felt the warmth of Edan’s hand leave hers, and instead rest on her chin, tilting it upwards. She looked into his brown eyes for one last seconds before shutting her eyes as Edan closed the last bit of space between them, connecting their lips. Lisbeth’s breath caught as she absorbed the warmth radiating from Edan’s mouth, making the kiss last as long as she possibly could. She could stay in this field of flowers with Edan, under the dimly lit sky for the rest of her life and not tire of it. She could feel the warmth of his lips against hers a million times again, and it would still paralyze her as if it was their first kiss all over again.   
Even when the kiss ended, Lisbeth kept her eyes closed, concentrating on putting every detail of the experience to memory. Her date with Edan would be something that she would hold dear to her for the rest of her life. She would never let this day fade away.


End file.
